


you and me forevermore

by iwritetrash



Category: Victoria (TV)
Genre: (would you look at that i never use the happy ending tag), Alcohol, Alfred is a social butterfly, Alfred reads poetry a lot too (but there's no actual poetry in this), First Meetings, Happy Ending, Implied Sexual Content, Long-Distance, M/M, New Year's Eve, New Year's Kiss, Power Cut, Resolved Arguments, argument, basically the new year au nobody asked for, five different new year's eves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-24 14:49:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13216089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwritetrash/pseuds/iwritetrash
Summary: five new year's eves, five different stories to tell.~in which alfred and edward celebrate a series of new year's eves, with each one bringing new challenges.





	you and me forevermore

**Author's Note:**

> i spent so long debating whether or not to actually post it, but my friend convinced me to just do it so here we are, with this crappy new year au, which was initially inspired by new year's day by taylor swift.
> 
> enjoy!

The music is so loud Edward thinks he can feel his entire body vibrating with the sheer force of it ricocheting through his bones. There’s a cup in his hand which he was given upon arrival, filled with some drink or another, still half-full. He’s standing awkwardly at the edge of the room, looking for a familiar face in the crowd, and failing to find a single one.

It’s New Year’s Eve, and Edward has been dragged as a plus one to a friend of a friend of a friend’s party, because apparently Florence found the idea of him spending the evening alone watching reruns and eating left-overs too tragic not to drag him along. Unfortunately, since Florence was invited by her own friend, Wilhelmina, Edward finds he knows nobody at the party, save for Florence herself, who disappeared five minutes after they arrived.

Edward checks his watch. 9.27. Only another two hours and thirty-three minutes before he can leave politely.

His eyes scan the crowds yet again, and it’s in that precise moment that he locks eyes with possibly the most beautiful man he has ever seen. Edward has never really believed in love at first sight, but if he did then this would certainly be one such occasion.

The young man is on the other side of the room, stood in the doorway and talking to Wilhelmina. His cheeks are a little flushed, his light hair slightly messy as though he’s been repeatedly running his hand through it, and his shirt seems to be only half done up, exposing fair skin that Edward already longs to touch. Without meaning to, he begins to walk across the room, as if pulled by the sheer magnetism of this handsome stranger.

As Edward approaches the pair stood in the doorway, he finds himself suddenly hesitant, realising he has absolutely no idea what to say to this god-like human. Wilhelmina saves the day, introducing them both to each other, and then quickly slipping away, sensing the mood immediately.

_Alfred_. He turns those blue eyes on Edward and _god_ , he is truly lost.

They slip easily into conversation. Alfred complains about the mistletoe Victoria, their hostess, has hidden around the house.

_I have been trapped under it twice by that Russian man, I forget his name, but he must have kissed everyone at the party by now_ , Alfred says.

Edward wonders if he might be able to catch Alfred under the mistletoe as well. It seems his lips are just _begging_ to be kissed. Or perhaps he might be able to hang onto Alfred until midnight, and grab a kiss from him then.

Alfred is an English Literature student at the same university Edward goes to, and he has classes with both Wilhelmina and Florence. _What a small world_ , Edward muses, _it’s a wonder we haven’t already crossed paths_.

When Edward mentions that he’s a PPE student Alfred wrinkles his nose. _You don’t seem boring enough to be a PPE student,_ he says, and Edward’s heart flutters.

Edward finally meets their hosts, Victoria and Albert. Alfred introduces Edward as his date ( _don’t tell Albert you’re a plus one to a plus one, he might just go ballistic yelling about having the right amount of food and drink and the like_ ), which makes Edward blush. Victoria and Albert are perfectly charming, but Edward can’t help but be relieved when they leave so he can learn more about Alfred.

When midnight eventually arrives, neither of them have moved from their spot in the doorway since they first started talking. As the countdown hits zero, Edward pulls Alfred in for a kiss, unable to keep himself from smiling when he feels Alfred kiss back.

_How do I find you again?_ Alfred asks as they part ways at the end of the night. Edward grins, and presses a slip of paper into his hand with his phone number scrawled on it, before kissing Alfred’s cheek and hurrying off into the night where Florence is waiting by the car.

 

* * *

 

Victoria is hosting another of her legendary New Year’s Eve parties, and this time Edward is actually invited, as opposed to being a plus one. Alfred is there too, of course, shirt barely done up as per usual, charming the socks off everyone he meets, while Edward watches from the side.

He isn’t a social butterfly like his boyfriend, and he certainly isn’t nearly as charming, but he’s content to watch instead. Alfred checks back in with Edward every now and then, kissing him, offering him a drink, chatting to him for a while until he’s dragged back into conversation by someone new.

It’s fascinating, really, watching Alfred glide easily through conversation topics, smiling and laughing and topping up drinks so that anyone would think he was the host, not Victoria, who is currently in a dark corner with her now-husband, Albert. Not that he blames her. He’d love to drag Alfred to a dark corner and do wonderful things with him, but there’s time for that later.

Midnight arrives soon enough, and Alfred is by Edward’s side before the countdown begins, apologising for disappearing so much, and promising to make it up to him with a sly grin that has Edward blushing like the first time they met.

People start disappearing pretty quickly once midnight and the big countdown have passed, leaving a small group of them who are spending the night at Victoria’s. The host and hostess disappear off to bed, muttering about tidying up in the morning, but Edward finds he isn’t quite ready to sleep, so he grabs a bin bag and starts collecting empty bottles. Alfred joins him, after minimal complaining about wanting to take Edward to bed, and Edward finds there’s something peaceful about the two of them cleaning up in near-silence.

It’s also incredibly domestic of them, which gets his mind whirring.

When they finally climb into bed (a fold-out mattress on the floor of Victoria’s study), at around two in the morning, Edward has made up his mind. Alfred curls into Edward’s body, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend’s waist as he tries to remover every gap between them. Edward smiles, his hand coming up to play with Alfred’s hair.

_Move in with me,_ He whispers into the darkness. Alfred freezes under Edward’s touch, and for a minute Edward thinks he might say no. But then his whole body relaxes, and he moves even closer, leaning into Edward’s touch.

_Okay_ , Alfred whispers back, and that’s that.

 

* * *

 

A power cut on New Year’s Eve. Typical, Edward thinks, as he fiddles with the fuse box. The entire building is down, so he doubts there’s anything he can do to solve the problem, but it’s worth a try. Alfred is busy lighting candles around their apartment, and muttering about the practicalities. He’s saying something about the benefits of having a gas stove that they can light with matches as Edward climbs down off the chair he’s stood on to reach the fuse box.

There’s not much more to be done after that. They light the stove and boil water for cups of tea, though they don’t dare open the fridge for milk, which means it’s not particularly _good_ tea, and then settle in for the night. Edward pulls out a pack of cards and plays solitaire while Alfred reads by candlelight, sprawled out on the sofa, his hand absent-mindedly finding its way into Edward’s hair.

Edward leans into the touch, before turning his head to press a kiss to Alfred’s hand. Alfred glances up from his book, and in the half-light Edward can just make out the question in his eyes. Edward plucks the book from Alfred’s hands, setting it aside before climbing on top of his boyfriend and leaning in to kiss him.

Alfred’s hands slide under Edward’s shirt, tracing bare skin, as Edward braces himself above his boyfriend. It’s certainly not a bad way to spend a power cut, Edward thinks, as he trails kisses down Alfred’s neck.

They have sex with the slow laziness of two people with all the time in the world, and the skill of two people who know each other’s bodies as intimately as they know their own. It’s not particularly romantic, fucking on the sofa, despite the candlelight, but they’re past the point of needing gooey romance to have a good time.

When they finish, they lie on the sofa, tucked under a blanket to keep them warm, and Alfred picks up his book  – poetry, Edward notes – and starts to read again. Edward wraps his arms around his boyfriend, squeezing him tight and pressing a kiss to his bare shoulder.

_Read to me_ , Edward mutters between kisses, and Alfred obliges, beginning to read aloud with such elegance that Edward can’t help but be awed. He has never been particularly interested in poetry, but he could listen to Alfred read it all night and be quite happy, here on their sofa, surrounded by candles and quiet.

Edward loses track of time entirely, lost in the lyricism of the poetry and Alfred’s voice, and, before they know, it fireworks are filling the sky, marking the end of the old year and the start of the new one.

_Happy New Year, my love_ , Alfred whispers. _May we spend the whole year together._

 

* * *

 

It’s their anniversary, and the first New Year’s Eve Edward and Alfred are going to spend apart since the first time they met. Edward is 3,413 miles away in Washington D.C. on a diplomatic visit with the Prime Minister, and a poorly timed one at that. It wasn’t as though a state visit could be rearranged around the Prime Minister’s secretary’s anniversary, though.

Instead, they were skyping as Alfred’s clock ticked closer to midnight, just visible from the opposite side of the room from the bed Alfred is currently curled up in. He’s wearing one of Edward’s jumpers, which is far too big for him, but it smells of his boyfriend, and it makes the distance between them feel a little less significant. Only a little, though.

Edward has snuck away from dinner early to call Alfred, knowing he would likely be forced to spend the evening drinking expensive champagne and making small talk until midnight when he might finally be able to excuse himself. He had hoped he might be able to take an early night on account of being jetlagged, but the Prime Minister was quite adamant that he celebrated with them.

Both Edward and Alfred had a glass of champagne in hand, Alfred’s from a cheap bottle he would likely finish once he ended the call to distract from the emptiness in their bed, Edward’s from the outrageously expensive mini-fridge in his hotel room. It was not, perhaps, as natural as they would have liked, but they would simply have to make do with what they could for the time being. Edward was due back home in a few days, when they might finally be able to truly celebrate the New Year as they wanted to.

Instead, though, they both chatter about their days, and about whether or not Edward is enjoying his trip, and how Alfred is filling the time without him, until the clock on Alfred’s wall strikes midnight, and they drink their champagne and wish each other a happy new year with the hollow joy that accompanies the distance between them. It doesn’t feel quite right.

For all Alfred’s joking and laughing, Edward can tell his boyfriend is struggling to be without him. It’s there in his eyes: the dark circles, the tears threatening to spill over, the pure emotion hiding within them. Edward knows his boyfriend well enough to see through the façade he’s putting on, and it hurts him to know there’s almost nothing he can do until he gets back home.

Edward has to hang up hardly five minutes later, telling Alfred to get some sleep, and that he loves him, and that he’s sorry. Alfred smiles, and says _I love you too_ , and tells Edward to get back to work so he can come home sooner.

He cries as soon as Edward hangs up. _What a wonderful way to welcome in the New Year_ , he thinks.

_But next year will be better, won’t it?_

 

* * *

 

Edward isn’t quite sure how the fight began. One moment they had been getting dressed and joking about wearing matching outfits to the New Year’s Eve party, and the next the mood had turned sour. It almost certainly had something to do with Edward making a joke about their future, about getting married one day soon, because it’s been four years already, and maybe it’s about time. Something about what Edward had said had pushed Alfred over the edge, and now here they were.

The tension had been brewing for months, starting to stew in nights when Edward had to work late, or when Alfred locked himself in their room for hours, frantically working on his dissertation for the Master’s degree he was pursuing. Petty squabbles had started to break out over simple things, like whose turn it was to do the dishes, or who left the bedroom light on all day. The fallout of the tension was inevitable.

Alfred is yelling about how Edward’s career is tearing them apart, because he’s never around anymore, and why on earth would they get married when they’ve hardly had a conversation all week that didn’t end in one of them getting pissed off?

Edward stumbles back, surprised by the truth in Alfred’s words. He has been working so hard he has barely spoken to his boyfriend, the love of his life, and he doesn’t even know what’s going on with him at the moment. It’s been weeks since he’s listened to Alfred gush about his research, or start rambling about a particular author, or just read him some poetry for God’s sake.

_I’ll quit_ , Edward hears himself say, and he hasn’t really thought it through but his heart is breaking at the thought he might lose Alfred over this, so he decides right then and there. If that’s what it takes to keep Alfred, then so be it.

Alfred stares at him in shock, before his entire expression softens, his shoulders slumping a little.

_No. No, I don’t want you to quit,_ Alfred sighs, running a hand through his hair. He doesn’t know how to explain what it is he wants, and he knows Edward is infuriated by it, confused by Alfred’s constant changing sides. He wants Edward to flourish, and thrive, and become a successful politician, and he knows that maybe that isn’t possible while they’re together. To become an elected politician while being openly gay is… it’s a rocky road, and they both know that, and Alfred knows his very presence at Edward’s side could be enough to turn whole voting demographics against him.

Edward looks hurt by Alfred’s attempt at an explanation. _You come before my career. Always._

Alfred has to swallow back his next words ( _ ~~Your happiness comes before mine. Always.~~_ ).

The reconciliation is slow, and it takes hours of peeling back layers of insecurities on both sides to get to the root of the issue. The final decision is this: Edward will not quit his job (Alfred is quite adamant on that front), and he will pursue a political career with Alfred by his side ( _and screw anyone who doesn’t like it, I don’t want their vote anyway_ ).

By the time they agree on all of this, by the time the emotions have settled and the tensions have been released, they’ve pretty much missed the party, and midnight is already upon them, fireworks lighting up the sky outside their flat, like they do every year. 

Edward pulls Alfred in for a kiss, and whispers _Happy New Year_ , before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a ring. He was going to propose at the party, he tells Alfred, but now is as good a time as any. 

Alfred says yes right away, his inhibitions floating away with the end of the year.

New year is a time for new beginnings. It is a time for forgiveness, and for moving on. It is a time for putting the past _firmly_ in the past, and for looking, instead, to the future, and to what it might hold.

In that moment, at one minute past midnight on New Year’s Day, Alfred and Edward look to their future with a smile, prepared for the year ahead. Whatever troubles it may bring, they will deal with them together, as they plan to for the rest of their lives.

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you liked it, sorry the ending was corny as fuck, but at least it was happy, which is a first... 
> 
> let me know if you liked it!


End file.
